


It Was Dark

by kk_arcanum



Category: The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller
Genre: Falling In Love, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hades and Persephone AU, M/M, Pining, Slow Burn, achilles as persephone, achilles is intrigued, kinda??, obviously, patroclus as hades, patroclus is smitten, thetis as demeter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-10
Updated: 2020-07-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:01:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25150549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kk_arcanum/pseuds/kk_arcanum
Summary: (Until You Came and Brought the Heavens With You)Patroclus, God of the Underworld, catches sight of a personified sunbeam. He falls in love.Achilles, son of Thetis, sees this mysterious stranger watching him from afar. He is intrigued.oran AU where Patroclus is Hades, Achilles is Persephone, and Briseis is hoping for the two of them to get their shit together.
Relationships: Achilles & Patroclus (Song of Achilles), Achilles & Thetis (Song of Achilles), Achilles/Patroclus (Song of Achilles), Briseis & Patroclus (Song of Achilles)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 33





	1. Intrigue

By the gods, he was beautiful. He seemed at home among the flora and fauna that followed and caressed each step of his. The nearby trees and long grasses bent and bowed as he walked past, honoring him and all of his grace. It seemed as though nothing that grew and thrived on our great Mother could ever think to harm him; even Helios’ unfeigned sunbeams shined kindly upon him, pressing kisses upon his skin in scattered clusters of stars and turning hair the color of molten gold. Though he was merely stepping through the forest, it seemed as though he were dancing, something so irresistibly elegant in even the slightest turn of his head as he spoke to a nymph beside him. He was beautiful.

Patroclus had thought this all, as he watched this fair beauty. He had been distracted by him once he caught a glimpse of sun-kissed hair and skin out of the corner of his eye. Of course, Patroclus shouldn’t be lingering for too long, lest he be caught staring by the lithe sunbeam; what would the gorgeous man think if he caught the god of the underworld leering at him? Shaking his head, Patroclus turned, and left this incandescent darling to his nymphs and sunbeams, where he belonged.

Once the mysterious man had disappeared from his line of vision, the sun kissed man frowned. Why had he just left without so much as a greeting? Achilles had noticed someone watching him from behind one of the thick trees in the forest, but the person didn’t seem to be causing any harm. The nymphs had said the same as well, along with a few unwarranted responses.

“He seemed so brooding! And serious! Oh Lord Achilles, you should have turned around, he seemed so grim until he looked at you, it was rather interesting,” a nymph chittered, petting the flowers on her arms. Achilles hummed in acknowledgement, his mind wondering about the man. 

“So you were able to see him then? Could you recognize him?” The nymph chittered again, albeit nervously this time, and shook her head.

“ _ Well, _ uhmm, I’m not sure? It’s all speculation my lord, but it might be, uhm, Lord Patroclus. None of us have ever really seen him, but one of my sisters did! When he visited a village nearby! She described him as such, with a scary face and dressed in the colors of death.” Achilles hummed again, so the man who was watching was another god, the one of death perhaps? By what his nymph attendant had told him, it seemed as though he had been stared at by Death himself. But why? Had there been something that he had done to garner that kind of attention? He frowned as his thoughts were cut off abruptly by the sudden presence of his mother, Thetis.

“Achilles, my son. Have you been upholding your duties? Keeping watch over your attendants and other accompanying fauna?” Thetis questioned, hair slick from rain she had summoned to a plot of land somewhere. Her voice came out cracking and creaking, an uncomfortable but familiar dissonance to him. Achilles nodded, and held her outstretched hand as she decided it was time to head home. 


	2. Curiosity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Achilles is curious.

As Eos painted the sky in sweet colors of pale rosebuds and the pink of seashells, the natural world began to wake. The brooks babbled with the nearby nymphs, giggling and spreading rumors of the mortals that would lend their ears to the talkative reeds, which would spread their talk until even the gods would hear. One of which had already leaned down to listen to the chatter.  _ The God of the Underworld is laying waste to the flowers that grow. He walks and crushes their life spans under his feet. _

Achilles stood, thought a moment, before stepping back inside the home he and his mother shared. He went about his daily routine there, checking the brambles that grew near the entrance and the families of mice and rabbits that lived with the two of them as well. Achilles noticed the two pairs of eyes that followed his steps and smiled lightly before stroking the ears of the two vixens. He went on to find his mother in their parlor room, fixing her crown of barley and grains atop her head. Achilles stepped towards her to assist the touch ups to her appearance before the two went out to assist the mortal farmers with their fields.

“Mother. Who is Patroclus?” He felt his mother stiffen a touch under the fabric of her chiton, before she responded.

“He is no one, my son, no one important to either of us.” The severity of her tone told Achilles that there would be no further mention of the god to her from him. Nevertheless, that didn’t seem to stop his lingering thoughts of the god with skin the sweetest bronze and a searing gaze of heated copper and honey. 

The two gods arrived, Thetis already assisting the pathetic mortals with their inability to grow and feed the land. At first, Achilles listened attentively to each mortal’s whims, but it was not long until his thoughts once more drifted towards decadent amber eyes. Taking notice of her son’s mental absence, Thetis interrupted herself to clear her throat, hoping to regain her son’s attention. When that had failed, she called his name.

“My son.” No response. “Achilles.” A hum of acknowledgement before nothing more. “ _ Aristos Achaion. _ ” His cloudy gaze cleared and his eyes snapped to hers.

“If you no longer find this interesting, then you are allowed procession to other activities.” Thetis remarked dryly, one eyebrow raised. At this, Achilles studied his mother, but for what exactly she did not know. He then bowed lightly.

“Then, if it is alright, I shall depart in search of other interests for the day.” At this, Achilles then left, heading in the opposite direction of the mortal men and his immortal mother.

Subconsciously, he hoped that he would be heading in the direction of the mysterious Patroclus.

Meanwhile, underneath the Earth Achilles walked, Patroclus had just returned to. His dark skin had been flushed a light rose, indiscernible and easily explained to anyone who doesn’t know him well. So of course, Briseis is there to greet him.

“Ah. Let me guess; you went to see him again?” Her eyes glittered with amusement as the roses on his cheeks seemed to bloom further. “Patroclus, did you attempt a conversation with him today? Or did you watch him from behind a tree, as if you were a peeping satyr spying upon an innocent dryad?” At this, Patroclus sputtered.

“Mmm- Briseis, that is, well- he isn’t, and I-” a quick breath as he cut himself off in hopes of reigning in any further embarrassment. “He is not a dryad, Briseis. He is a god of Spring, and knows full well how to do more than protect a single tree.”   
  


“So I suppose this means that you  _ didn’t _ talk to him, then?”

“...yes.” 


End file.
